new dock (view of what's to come)

[ryberg]

While we were preparing for the wedding we had here a couple of nights ago, I suddenly saw something unusual on the horizon and snapped this photo to document the event. So this is taken from our beach area, between calle 6 & 8, looking north; the hotel sticking out on the left is of course the Gran Porto Real. I'm told this was just some kind of temporary stop or test run or something, but there it was, still as a fixture of the landscape, complete with some people bustling around and everything.

Steve

[james]

Yeah, I saw that yesterday too.

Me thinks I will boycott all service providers from this pier.

[ndh texas]

I sure wish i wouldn't have picked gran porto real 6 months ago. I didn't care for that sight. Thanks for the warning.

[sondra]

Am bringing 3 good girl friends and staying at the Porto
Real Nov. 29-Dec. 6 (we are women in our late 40's--so not looking for a swinging place...Ha) Anyway, I saw your post, but couldn't tell from the pix what you were talking about.

Are we going to regret being at the Porto Real?
SOndra

[Anna]

The comment here is about the fact that they just started to use the new pier by Porto Real. This pier has been the object of lots of protests since they've built it on a beautiful reef /popular dive site.

[playa3]

We stayed at the Porto Real a week ago and it was raining so we took the time share scam talk. They say they are building over 600 high scale condos just North of the Porto and that the pier is only half done and will service the new ferry operators to Cozumel and the pier will service cruise ships within a year. FYI--the time share deal is 300 nights in their hotels for only $10,000. As soon as you say no, it's 400 nights for $7,700. It was a total waste of time except for the pier information which I hope is as reliable as their time share deal. We stayed in a jr suite and it was very noisey--otherwise just ok.

[sctx]

Originally posted by "James"


Me thinks I will boycott all service providers from this pier.

Bravo James!!! I am in my 4th year of a McDonalds boycott brought on by a bulldozer taking out a huge 300 year old Live Oak tree on one of their sites in San Antonio... :x I still pass on this info 2-3 times /week... +/- 120 times a year
As a commercial landscape contractor in a very beautiful and environmentally sensitive area, I am caught smack in the middle of the reality of progress and preservation of the environment. By no means am I a "tree hugger", ( in fact, I do more positive things for the environment in one year than most eco protesters do in a lifetime) but there has to be a respected balance based on facts.
Case & Point, PGA Village golf course developement over the Edward Aquifer recharge zone in San Antonio TX. Complaint: Eco protesters screamed contamination of the aquifer from over use of chemical on the golf courses, and they recommended the property be re-zoned for residential developement.
Fact 1: The property would be developed in some manner
Fact 2: The PGA went through years of site envronmental impact studies before deciding to proceed
Fact 3: The PGA is on the cutting edge of land development and management. They employ very expensive/intricate construction techniques and policies to minimze initial impact on the site. The chemicals/fertilizers used in turf management are extremely expensive and are applied with computer controlled equipment to prevent over application.
Fact 4: Proper environmental controls are in place to control stormater/runoff off and filter herbicides/impurities in this water through a series of "water quality ponds" before being released into the existing creeks.
Fact 5: The ratio of pavement to vegetated area makes the PGA village nothing more than 3000 acres of parkland providing refuge to wildlife in a metropolitan area
Fact 6: 3000 homes could have been built... thats +/- 10,000 people, 6000 cars, 3500 dogs, 1500 cats, 3000 lawnmowers/weedeaters, hundreds of acres of asphalt/concrete, and +/- 365 White-tail deer killed on the roads in the development every year.
My Verdict: PGA Village wins this one hands down

So in regards to the pier, I feel that important for us not to protest progress itself but to protest how progress progresses. I personally do not care for the sight of the pier, but it's construction somewhere in Playa was probably inevitable due to good old economics . But what we should be p'd about is:
1. the lack/inadequacy of initial and long-term environmental impact studies in site selection. Site was selected purely for reasons of economics/convenience and could have been relocated to minimize eco impact
2. Sub-standard construction techniques/controls in an environmentally sensitive area. I can just imagine all the lime/form release agents/gasoline/etc that contaminated the water!
3. Aggressive political ram-rodding of project over VALID local protests, by those who would benefit the most economically.

I try to avoid local politics when I'm down in Playa and I try not to get too upset with growth, but it really saddens me to see the lack of concern for how this growth proceeds in such a beautiful and sensitive area... hopefully, through properly directed protests, these practices will start to change more rapidly... then I will have my niche and can finally move down there.......but I fear they will not change quite fast enough.

Oh Yeah, the 300 year old oak tree McDonalds bulldozed... seems the tree was in the location where the childrens playground needed to go.......... Whataburger rocks!!!!!!

So James, you go boy!!! And I'll throw in a big boo/hiss for the pier when we're down there next (hopefully in march!)

[Woodinator]

This is a sad day for PDC. I can't believe that they would destroy such a wonderful beach that goes beyond the Porto Real. When we were there last year, we didn't see any evidence that they were going to do that. It was bad enough that the Porto Real blocked the view of that beach, but now to make it a commercial pier and a "Cruise Ship Dock"! What a bummer.

[james]

It's not a cruise ship dock. The project has been castrated, mostly. It's not such a big deal.

[BMK1951]

Originally posted by "James"

It's not a cruise ship dock. The project has been castrated, mostly. It's not such a big deal.

That's a relief. What's the word on plans to build condos along the beach north of Porto Real?

I used to love the north end of town because there were still lengths of open beach front. It's one of the reason why I stayed at Porto to be in walking distance. Lord knows Porto's beach is totally crappy. If there's no open beach to walk on north of the hotel, I might as well start looking for someplace else to stay.

[Woodinator]

Hi All,

We just got back from PDC last night. We also used to stay at the Porto Real until this time. When I checked the prices they were a bit out of control. So, we stayed at the Playa-Maya. VERY nice place.

I took a walk over to the Porto Real to check out the new dock. The road to the dock is the road right next to the Porto Real. They've brought in quite a bit of beach near where the sea wall is. There also seems to be a sand bar out in front of the hotel to beyond where the boats are moored. The beach in front of the Porto Real is pretty small. Lots of erosion.

The Dock is being worked on, but not very hard. There is a crane at the base of it that was idle for the entire week. I saw a few people working out on the end of the dock, but not very hard. I didn't see any boats of any kind using it. Its definitly not big enough to deal the the cruise ships, but if it opens it will be busy on that street.

On the other side of the street, they are building what seems to be either condo's or the Porto Real is expanding across the street. There is a 2 story building that is just a shell at this point. The rooms on the street side will have a nice view of the Porto Real and the dock.

Bottom line, it has changed the view from down the beach. Its too bad, especially if it just sits there and does nothing. Eventually it will become part of the landscape like the Porto Real did.

I hope Playa stays small and cozy!

Leave all th big box shops and other crap to Cancun!!!

To all of you that are still in Playa, I miss it!!!! I am looking forward to coming back later this year to attend Spanish school and hang out for a couple of months. Until then I am in Vancouver, the city of plenty rain!

[CCDC]

I do not recall exactly which day it was on my last PDC trip, but a cruise ship did pull up to the pier sometime around March 8th or 9th. It must have been docked for less than 24 hours and I never observed or otherwise heard about a disembarkation. I hope that the cruise ships forever abandon it.

[BMK1951]

Originally Posted by CCDC

I do not recall exactly which day it was on my last PDC trip, but a cruise ship did pull up to the pier sometime around March 8th or 9th. It must have been docked for less than 24 hours and I never observed or otherwise heard about a disembarkation. I hope that the cruise ships forever abandon it.

That's rather curious as Playa del Carmen is not listed as having port-of-call status with any of the major cruise lines.

Cozumel is the port-of-call and sometimes there will be 12 cruise ships docked there. Generally, if there is not enough dock space a ship anchors off Punto Langusta or Purta Maya and tenders pax in to Coz.

Thanks to a wonderful T.A. I know, I had a freebie aboard ms Veendam. The port was crowded on that March 7 day. I visited Playa after doing some beach time in Cozumel. While there were 11 ships in port that day none were tied up to the pier in Playa. Maybe what you saw was a booze cruise or excursion boat from Cancun? They can resemble cruise ships from the distance but are markedly smaller.

[CCDC]

Rereading my post, I should clarify-it was not actually "docked" at the pier--it was anchored probably a couple of hundred yards off the pier, but it was still pretty close to the pier. I don't know much about cruising, but I am quite sure what I saw was a cruise ship, not a booze cruise boat.